slip

verb (1)

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\ ˈslip

slipped; slipping

Definition of slip

(Entry 1 of 5)

intransitive verb

1a : to move with a smooth sliding motion

b : to move quietly and cautiously : steal

c : elapse, pass

2a(1) : to escape from memory or consciousness

(2) : to become uttered through inadvertence

b : to pass quickly or easily away : become lost let an opportunity slip

3 : to fall into error or fault : lapse

4a : to slide out of place or away from a support or one's grasp

b : to slide on or down a slippery surface slip on the stairs

c : to flow smoothly

5 : to get speedily into or out of clothing slipped into his coat

6 : to fall off from a standard or accustomed level by degrees : decline

7 : sideslip

transitive verb

1 : to cause to move easily and smoothly : slide

2a : to get away from : elude, evade slipped his pursuers

b : to free oneself from the dog slipped its collar

c : to escape from (one's memory or notice) their names slip my mind

3 : shed, cast the snake slipped its skin

4 : to put on (a garment) quickly —usually used with on slip on a coat

5a : to let loose from a restraining leash or grasp

b : to cause to slip open : release, undo slip a lock

c : to let go of

d : to disengage from (an anchor) instead of hauling

6a : to insert, place, or pass quietly or secretly

b : to give or pay on the sly

7 : slink, abort

8 : dislocate slipped his shoulder

9 : to transfer (a stitch) from one needle to another without working a stitch

10 : to avoid (a punch) by moving the body or head quickly to one side

slip

noun (1)

Definition of slip (Entry 2 of 5)

1a : a sloping ramp extending out into the water to serve as a place for landing or repairing ships

b : a ship's or boat's berth between two piers

2 : the act or an instance of departing secretly or hurriedly gave his pursuer the slip

3a : a mistake in judgment, policy, or procedure

b : an unintentional and trivial mistake or fault : lapse a slip of the tongue

4 : a leash so made that it can be quickly slipped

5a : the act or an instance of slipping down or out of a place a slip on the ice also : a sudden mishap

b : a movement dislocating parts (as of a rock or soil mass) also : the result of such movement

c : a fall from some level or standard : decline a slip in stock prices

6a : an undergarment made in dress length and usually having shoulder straps also : half-slip

b : a case into which something is slipped specifically : pillowcase

7 : a disposition or tendency to slip easily

8 : the action of sideslipping : an instance of sideslipping

slip

noun (2)

Definition of slip (Entry 3 of 5)

1a : a small shoot or twig cut for planting or grafting : scion

b : descendant, offspring

2a : a long narrow strip of material

b : a small piece of paper

3 : a young and slender person a slip of a girl

4 : a long seat or narrow pew

slip

verb (2)

slipped; slipping

Definition of slip (Entry 4 of 5)

transitive verb

: to take cuttings from (a plant) : divide into slips slip a geranium

slip

noun (3)

Definition of slip (Entry 5 of 5)

: a mixture of finely divided clay and water used especially by potters (as for casting or decorating wares or in cementing separately formed parts)

Choose the Right Synonym Phrases Containing slip Learn More About slip

Choose the Right Synonym for slip

Noun (1)

error, mistake, blunder, slip, lapse mean a departure from what is true, right, or proper. error suggests the existence of a standard or guide and a straying from the right course through failure to make effective use of this. procedural errors mistake implies misconception or inadvertence and usually expresses less criticism than error. dialed the wrong number by mistake blunder regularly imputes stupidity or ignorance as a cause and connotes some degree of blame. diplomatic blunders slip stresses inadvertence or accident and applies especially to trivial but embarrassing mistakes. a slip of the tongue lapse stresses forgetfulness, weakness, or inattention as a cause. a lapse in judgment

First Known Use of slip

Verb (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a

Noun (1)

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun (2)

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb (2)

1530, in the meaning defined above

Noun (3)

1640, in the meaning defined above

History and Etymology for slip

Verb (1)

Middle English slippen, probably going back to Old English *slippan, weak verb cognate with Middle Dutch slippen "to lose one's footing, slip," Middle Low German slippen, Old High German pesliphen, pislipfan "to lose one's footing, stumble," intensive derivative of Germanic *sleipan- "to slide, slip" — more at slipper entry 1

Note: The Oxford English Dictionary, first edition, and Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology take the Middle English verb to be a loan from Middle Dutch or Middle Low German, though it seems equally or more probable that it is a native formation, as was Walter Skeat's view.

Noun (1)

Middle English slype, slipp "sloping landing place for a boat," noun derivative of slippen "to slip entry 1"

Noun (2)

Middle English slyp "edge of a garment," probably borrowed from Middle Dutch sleppe, slippe "loose end of a garment" or Middle Low German slippe, in same sense, of uncertain origin

Note: The earliest sense of this word, "edge of a garment," is first attested in the English-Latin dictionary Promptorium parvulorum (ca. 1440), in the entry "Slyp, or skyrte: Lascinia [for classical lacinia 'border of a garment, edge, hem']." Presumably derived from this meaning is sense 2. The meaning "scion, offspring" (sense 1 and hence sense 3) is first attested in Wynkyn de Worde's printed edition (1495) of the medieval encyclopedia De proprietatis rerum, adapted from John of Trevisa's 14th-century English translation. It is not clear how "scion, offspring" might relate to the other English meanings ("strip of material" > "shoot of a plant"?), or to the presumed Middle Dutch/Middle Low German etyma, which have no comparable sense. -- The word slyp is also attested in the sense "cleft, crack" in late Middle Dutch (the dictionary Teuthonista of Duytschlender of Gert van der Schueren, 1477); it has been suggested that this was the earliest sense, with "cleft in a piece of fabric" leading to the meaning "loose end of a garment." The noun slyp is clearly derived from an earlier verb slippen "to split," which may be a weak derivative *slippōn- (< *slib-no-) of a Germanic strong verb *sleiban- evident in Old English tōslāf "(s/he) split, cleaved," assumed infinitive tōslīfan (see sliver entry 1).

Verb (2)

derivative of slip entry 3

Noun (3)

Middle English slyp, slype, slyppe "mud, slime," going back to Old English slypa, slyppe, slipa (masculine or feminine weak noun) "slime, paste, pulp," going back to Germanic *slupjōn-, zero-grade noun derivative from a Class 2 strong verb *sleupan- "to creep, glide" (whence Old English slūpan "to slip, glide, move softly," Middle Dutch slūpen "to creep, glide," Old High German sliufan "to slip, creep," Gothic sliupan "to slip (in), enter stealthily"), probably back-formed from an intensive derivative *slupp- (as in Old High German slopfāri "itinerant monk," intslupfen "to slip away, escape") of a hypothetical verbal base *sleub- "slip," perhaps going back to Indo-European *sleu̯b^h — more at sleeve

Note: This account of the origin of *sleupan- is based on R. Lühr, Expressivität und Lautgesetz im Germanischen (Heidelberg, 1988), p. 352; her hypothesis is taken up in Lexikon der indogermanischen Verben (2. Auflage, 2001), s.v. *sleu̯b^h-. As the author points out, this back-formation would have to extend as far as the ancestor of Gothic to account for the verb in that language.